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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
RICHMOND, Va.—An official of the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission has vacated a $200-per-day fine on Facebook for failing to reveal information from a subscriber's account.
Virginia imposed the fine Aug. 28 after Palo Alto, Calif.-based Facebook Inc. did not respond to a workers comp defense attorney's subpoena seeking information about an employee for Manassas, Va.-based Colgan Air Inc., said Chief Deputy Commissioner James J. Szablewicz.
Facebook responded later and argued that the federal Electronics Communications Privacy Act prohibited it from responding to the subpoena. A deputy commissioner agreed and vacated the $200-per-day fine, Mr. Szablewicz said. Facebook also argued that courts have ruled that the U.S. law prohibits social networking sites from revealing subscribers' information—even in the face of a subpoena.
The case reportedly involved the airline's attempt to obtain vacation photos of an employee to counter a workers comp claim for a back injury.